Type
Bankruptcy
Country
European Union
Region
Location of affected unit(s)
UK, Ireland
Sector
Retail
Retail Trade, Except Of Motor Vehicles And Motorcycles
Retail Sale Of Information And Communication Equipment In Specialised Stores
47.41 - Retail sale of computers, peripheral units and software in specialised stores

2,104 jobs
Number of planned job losses
Job loss
Announcement Date
26 March 2012
Employment effect (start)
26 March 2012
Foreseen end date

Description

On 26 March 2012 the video game retailer Game Group announced that it had gone into administration, wtih the loss of 2,104 jobs in the UK and Ireland, as a result of the closure of 277 stores. The remaining 333 stores will stay open until a buyer can be found. The company has suffered from high fixed costs and an ambitious international expansion. Its business has also been hit by competition from online-only retailers. 

Game Group employs 385 staff at its headquarters in Basingstoke in Hampshire, UK, and about 5,100 in its stores in the UK and Ireland. About another 5,000 staff are employed at Game's other stores, which are located in France, Spain, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Scandinavia and Australia.


Sources

  • 26 March 2012: BBC News
  • 26 March 2012: Game Group

Citation

Eurofound (2012), Game, Bankruptcy in European Union, factsheet number 73378, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/73378.